Kanye West Reclaims Center Stage

Last Monday afternoon, an email summoned recipients to a loading dock in Manhattan's Meatpacking District at 10 p.m.. There, jackhammer beats reverberated through garage doors open to the street as rain poured down. Inside, the crowd was peppered with hip-hop's elite, including Beyoncé and Jay-Z, who beamed and called for the DJ to re-play a song that sampled Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit."

The host, Kanye West, wasn't on a stage, but as with everything he does, it was a performance. He grinned and bounced in...